The same note of simplicity ran through
all amusements and entertaining, and I think that it constituted
the charm of the place. I called one afternoon on the very
agreeable wife of a high official, and was told at the door that
Lady R--was not at home. Recognizing my voice, a cry came up
from the kitchen-stairs. "Oh, yes! I am at home to you. Come right
down into the kitchen," where I found my friend, with her sleeves
rolled up, making with her own hands the sweets for the dinner-
party she was giving that night, as she mistrusted her cook's
capabilities. The Ottawa people had then that gift of being
absolutely unaffected, which makes the majority of Australians so
attractive. Now everything has changed; Ottawa has trebled in size
since I first knew it, and on revisiting it twenty-five years
later, I found that it had become very "smart" indeed, with
elaborate houses and gorgeous raiment.
Rideau Hall had two open-air skating-rinks in its own grounds, two
imposing toboggan-slides, and a covered curling-rink. The "roaring
game" is played in Canada with very heavy straight-sided iron
"stones," weighing from 50 to 60 lbs.
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